Fresno Bee sees no progress made with Boehner’s visit: “A news conference featuring House Speaker John Boehner at a dusty Kern County field made for dramatic political theater Wednesday afternoon. But it’s doubtful that the emergency drought legislation touted by Republican lawmakers will be bear fruit this year for parched San Joaquin Valley farmers. There’s no doubt that Valley growers need more water. Nor is there any doubt that this continuing drought is fast becoming a kidney punch to our region’s recovery from the Great Recession. But understand: Moving water around California — either for farming or to quench the thirst of Southern California residents — always has been controversial. The battle usually pits environmentalists and fishermen against farmers and others wanting more water. … “ Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Another day of water wars and nary a drop of progress made
Sacramento Bee to Speaker Boehner: Leave the politics at the side: “House Speaker John Boehner stopped by California on Wednesday, claiming he wanted to open the spigot for drought-stricken farmers, while doing a little rainmaking for the National Republican Congressional Committee amidst the lush, irrigated golf courses of Palm Springs. We welcome the attention of the speaker, but the pretext under which he appeared is suspect. Along with GOP Reps. Devin Nunes, Kevin McCarthy and David Valadao, Boehner said he wants to delay implementation of the San Joaquin River Restoration Project until 2015, which would leave salmon high and dry. … “ Continue reading this editorial from the Sacramento Bee here: Editorial: A Speaker Boehner runs through it
If a drought happens, is it real before the Governor says so? LA Times Cartoonist Ted Rall explores.
Why Jerry Brown skirted High Speed Rail and the tunnels in his speech: “Gov. Jerry Brown has pursued two multibillion-dollar water and high-speed rail projects so aggressively in recent months that it loomed conspicuously how carefully he stepped to avoid the projects in his biggest speech of the year. Brown mentioned the $68 billion rail program only once in his State of the State address this week, saying “we’re building the nation’s only high-speed rail.” He gave equally little air to his plan to build two tunnels to divert water around the Delta. The absence of a forceful defense of either project was a departure from previous speeches, suggesting Brown’s wariness of controversy in an election year. … “ Continue reading here: Why Jerry Brown skirted high-speed rail and water plan in California State of the State address
We’re not in this together until everyone statewide is conserving, says Manteca Bulletin editor Dennis Wyatt: He notes that much of Northern California is looking at some pretty strict rationing, however: ” … It will be a different story south of the Tehachapi range. Grass will remain green. Toilets will flush. Ornamental water fountains will gush. New swimming pools will be filled. Those living in the Los Angeles-San Diego region will bristle at suggestions they are not reducing water use enough. They will point northward and slam those in northern and central California for failing to develop “their own water system”. They will argue it is unfair for them to suffer because of the failures of those to the north. This will happen because it has happened before in every drought since 1977. ... “ Continue reading this article at the C-WIN website here: Aqueduct Still Flows Full Throttle During Current Drought
Jeff Kightlinger says Southern California has come along way: ” … The region has done two major things right since the dry cycles of the 1970s and early 1990s. First, Southern Californians have embraced conservation and dramatically lowered their water consumption, installing millions of low-flow toilets, shower heads and other appliances. Second, the region has developed new reservoirs and groundwater banks in the Southland and the San Joaquin Valley to store water in good times for use in bad. Absent these investments, Southern California would now be in the throes of a historic water shortage. We are far from immune from this and future droughts, and we must continue to treat every drop of water as precious, approaching this drought as one state. But, in the Southland, we have learned a few hard lessons from previous droughts. … “ Read more from the LA Times here: We’ve come a long way in slaking SoCal’s thirst
Record drought sure to bring changes, says Thomas Elias: ” … It shapes up as an unmitigated disaster, one that some call as catastrophic as a major earthquake. This is a bigger problem than any wildfire, because it has the potential to cause multiple massive blazes. Some analyses indicate the ongoing drought was one major reason the Rim Fire near Yosemite National Park burned so widely last summer. The state had gotten a record-low 4.58 inches of precipitation from January to June of last year, and then a major July heat wave added to tinderbox conditions sustaining that wildfire, the 14th most damaging in United States history. So far, this drought has produced no major changes in state policy and practices, although some cities are already telling restaurants to serve water only on request, a 1970s-era tactic. But if past is prologue, as historians often tell us, we can count on bigger changes. … “ Read more from the Hanford Sentinel: California Focus: Record drought sure to bring changes
California needs to consider water storage, says George Skelton: “So it’s official: We are in a serious drought. That means this: Next comes serious flooding. But we’ll still be in a declared drought. That’s just the nature of California weather patterns — and water politics. A drought proclamation, as issued by Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday, changes the political climate. It focuses public attention on the need for costly new waterworks. … “ Read more here: Drought offers an opportunity to consider water policy
Is the loss of Arctic ice the cause of our drought? Columnist John Lindsey explores: ” … The loss of this ice in the Arctic is a direct result of warming temperatures there. In fact, average temperatures have increased at about two to three times faster relative to the midlatitudes. This enhanced amount of warming in the high northern latitudes is referred to as Arctic Amplification. It’s interesting to note that some climatologists and scientist suspect that this condition could be the culprit behind the big and persistent ridge of high pressure over California that has produced unprecedented dry conditions and record-breaking temperatures throughout the state. … “ Read more here: Loss of Arctic ice leads to drought in California
We need a water bond with water storage and no pork, says the Fresno Bee: ” … We agree with the governor that the delta’s imperiled ecosystem must be restored and that the state’s water conveyance system needs to be improved — both of which are BDCP goals. The reality is, lawsuits and strong opposition will block the project for many years, if, indeed, dirt is ever turned on the twin tunnels. Increased water-storage capacity, however, is an immediate need, especially with climate-change scientists predicting that California will experience wildly fluctuating weather cycles. The state faces the possibility of seeing record rainfall in short bursts, followed by long dry spells — such as the one we are experiencing now. … “ Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Editorial: Put water bond on the ballot
Jay Lund takes us through the innovations that drought has spurred through the years: “The 2013 calendar year was the driest on record for much of California. There is almost no snow in the Sierra Nevada or Trinity Mountains, and the forecast for January is dry. We are currently in a drought, though with three months left of our normally wet season, it remains possible that 2014 will not become a drought year. California’s history is punctuated by droughts. Each drought reveals problems and becomes an opportunity to focus on improving water management and expanding smaller-scale innovations. … “ Read more from Jay Lund at the Sacramento Bee here: California droughts precipitate information